Sometime, Less is More.
Hello all, this is 1st post, and here is my review of the Magic Pie Edge.
I recently acquired a rear 26 inch Magic Pie Edge from GoldenMotor.ca. My previous motor, a beloved geared AmpedBikes, was killed in action earlier this summer and for a while I was using my girlfriend's Ebike that is equipped with a Golden Motor MP3.
I like the MP3, but it was too heavy and too strong for my liking.
I was not feeling beeing on a bicycle anymore, but rather on an electrified scooter.
Since my last order from China took ages to arrive and cost me an arm and a leg in customs,
I decided to try the Edge and order it directly from Canada. The motor arrived within a week, with very low shipping costs.
I installed the motor on a Specialized FSR double suspension bike in only one night! Wire connections are much better than MP3, and water resistant. Since the controller is in the motor, it helps making a very clean build. I carefully tiewrapped each cable and went out a 1am to do my first run.
Pros
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Power is great ! Acceleration is very surprising for such a small motor. The motor easily reaches 41-42 km/h with 48V 12S LIPOs and a Shwalbe Marathon 26 x 1.75 tire. With heavy pedaling and back wind, 45km/h is possible. Very close in power to the MP3. I have absolutely no problems at all climbing any hill in my area.
Weight is definitely more manageable than the MP3. The whole bike now weigth only 53 lbs. When braking you can definitely feel the lower rotational inertia of the motor.
Very quiet motor. Not completely silent, but close. As soon as you reach 10 km/h, the noise of the wind and gears is greater than the noise of the motor. There is no difference in noise level when the motor is idle or WOT. My freewheel makes about 3 times the noise of this motor, so yeah, its silent.
I clearly underestimated the fun of having a quiet motor.
Even if the motor is larger than the AmpedBikes, it is stealthier because of the complete absence of noise. This is great !
Actually, It made me wonder if the Magic Pie 3 could be upgraded with Sinewave controller.
Cruise control keeps the speed constant, regardless of conditions, it's not a throttle lock. All previous controllers that I had were slowing down when going uphill or facing wind. This controller tries to keep the same speed by giving more or less throttle. Also, the cruise deactivate itself if you touch the brakes OR if you turn back the throttle on. This is a great safety feature. In the event that your brakes becomes disconnected, you would not be dangerously stucked in full throttle. This is great !
Drag is minimal. The motor does not freewheel, but you can feel that that there is a lot less drag when pedaling than the MP3. I like this a lot because I usually don't use the motor at all when peoples or other cyclists are around.
Easy USB configuration.
The provided application and USB cable make adjusting motor parameters a breeze.
I experimented quite a bit, but went back with nearly all stock settings. I only changed the ebrake phase amps value from 20 to 40. On stock settings, the brake is really weak compared to MP3.
Cons
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Freewheel is doing the Hula hoop. It sucks, but my AmpedBikes also did that. I tried two different freewheels, and they both do it, so its the motor. It does not affect shifting, so I decided to just ignore it and never look at the spinning freewheel again. I don't know if its fixable or not.
Questionnable choice of wheel lacing pattern:
I had some spokes loosening on the MP3, but not on the Edge. However, the angle at which some spokes are connecting to the rim is quite steep, and I am afraid that on the long run, spokes will break because of fatigue. The kit came with 2 spare spokes. This could be interpreted as a bad sign, like here are some spare spokes, you'll need them. LOL. For now, I have done no adjustment at all, and wheel is solid and straight. Lets keep fingers crossed...
Conclusion
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I LOVE THIS MOTOR ! I should have replaced the AmpedBikes kit a long time ago !
I already have made 300km on the kit in two weeks, commuting with it everyday.
I really don't miss the MP3...
Nice job Golden Motors and Thanks Gary !
